What is "samara"

Samara \Sa*ma"ra\ (? or ?), n. [L. samara, samera, the seed of the elm.] (Bot.) A dry, indehiscent, usually one-seeded, winged fruit, as that of the ash, maple, and elm; a key or key fruit.

dried fruit of certain trees, from Latin samara "the seed of the elm," variant of samera, perhaps from Gaulish.

n. The winged indehiscent fruit of trees such as the ash, elm or maple

n. a winged often one-seed indehiscent fruit as of the ash or elm or maple [syn: key fruit, key]

A samara is a winged achene, a type of fruit in which a flattened wing of fibrous, papery tissue develops from the ovary wall. A samara is a simple dry fruit and indehiscent (not opening along a seam). The shape of a samara enables the wind to carry the seed farther away than regular seeds from the parent tree:

• The seed can be in the centre of the wing, as in the elms (genus Ulmus), the hoptree ( Ptelea trifoliata), and the bushwillows (genus Combretum).
• The seed can be on one side, with the wing extending to the other side, making the seed autorotate as it falls, as in the maples (genus Acer) and ash trees (genus Fraxinus).

A samara is sometimes called a key and is often referred to as a wingnut, helicopter or whirlybird , whirligig, polynose, or, in the north of England, a spinning jenny. During the autumn months, they are a popular source of amusement for children who enjoy tossing them in the air and watching them spin to the ground.

Some species that normally produce paired samaras, such as Acer pseudoplatanus, also produce them in groups of 3 or 4.

group of three samaras of sycamore maple ( Acer pseudoplatanus. They are normally paired) of the tropical ash ( Fraxinus uhdei) hoptree ( Ptelea trifoliata) Siberian elm ( Ulmus pumila)

Sámara, situated along the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica's Guanacaste Province, has long been a favorite vacation spot for both Costa Ricans and foreigners. The town has approximately 1500 full-time residents and the district has a population of around 4,100 people.

Samara, also known as the John E. Christian House, is a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright located in West Lafayette, Indiana. The home is an example of the Usonian homes that Wright designed. Samara was built from 1954 to 1956 and was still occupied by the original owner, John E. Christian, until he died on July 12, 2015.

Samara is a female given name. It is of Hebrew origin and its meaning is guardian or protected by God. Notable people with the name include:

• Samara Almeida (born 1992), Brazilian volleyball player
• Samara Felippo (born 1978), Brazilian actress
• Samara Golden (born 1973), American artist
• Samara Lubelski, American musicina
• Samara Weaving (born 1992), Australian actress and model

Samara (Samara Canada) is a nonprofit, non-partisan advocacy group for citizen engagement and participation. Samara carries out independent research on the state of Canada's democratic institutions and attitudes Canadians hold about public life. Its efforts to date have focused on the federal level, though the organization's findings have application to provincial and local politics in Canada. Samara's aim is to provide resources to citizens in better understanding their political structures.

Samara's efforts fall into three categories: Samara Democracy Reports, Samara in the Classroom and Democracy Talks. The Democracy Reports are independent research conducted by Samara to expose aspects of Canadian public life to scrutiny. The first report in the series was the MP Exit Interviews which surveyed former Members of Parliament on how they entered politics and viewed their role. Since that time reports have been released on other topics such as those disengaged from the political process, and the role of political parties. Samara in the Classroom provides resources to middle and secondary school teachers, as well as professors and post-secondary students on how to more effectively teach people about Canada's democracy. The Democracy Talks series is an outreach program to help citizens connect to their democracy.

Samara is a 1995 Indian Kannada action film directed by Chi Guru Dutt with the association of P. Sheshadri. The film features Shivarajkumar, Sudharani and Devaraj in the lead roles.